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Tuesday, April 5, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Anthony Caldwell, (614) 345-8880
Anthony.Caldwell@franklincountyohio.gov
 COLUMBUS, Ohio – Franklin County Auditor Michael Stinziano has partnered with the Age-Friendly Innovation Center at The Ohio State University’s College of Social Work to produce a report that concludes older homeowners face significant financial burdens to paying their property taxes and remaining in their homes.
Older Adults and Property Taxes, which is available online, notes that two major trends are happening simultaneously: the population of older adults is growing, while property values are increasing. More people are aging with mortgages, with more debt and less savings than previous generations. It also finds that many older homeowners rely on social security for their income, and it hasn’t kept pace with housing and cost of living increases.
“This report demonstrates how our older neighbors need more support and help with the challenges they face in remaining in their homes and in their neighborhoods,” Auditor Stinziano said.
In crafting the report, the Auditor’s office and Age-Friendly co-hosted a group of older adults who previewed the report in order to gather feedback before publication.
“Auditor Stinziano’s office supported our community-engaged approach, enabling the Age-Friendly Innovation Center to listen to older adults and professionals in the community, which yielded important findings directly from residents,” said Katie White, Director of the Age-Friendly Innovation Center.
The report concludes that current programs aren’t enough to tackle the burdens that older homeowners face. To address those shortcomings, the report makes recommendations:
- Increase the income requirement for the Homestead Exemption to $50,000, increase the property value that is exempted up to $31,200, and index the value for inflation. The Homestead Exemption is a program which allows qualified senior citizens and permanently and totally disabled homeowners to reduce their property tax burden by shielding some of the appraised market value of their home from taxation.
- Create an Ohio Homestead Exemption Circuit Breaker that creates a sliding scale to define income eligibility.
- Update the Property Tax Assistance Program (PTAP) with an online application, train social workers to support the program, adjust the savings threshold to $10,000, and increase funding for the program to $50,000 per tax cycle. PTAP is a program that provides emergency one-time help with paying property taxes for lower-income homeowners age 60 and up.
- Create a new Franklin County Property Tax Relief Program that offers financial help when property taxes exceed a certain percentage of an older homeowner’s income.
- Increase the number of people who take advantage of the Treasurer’s Office Budget Payment Plan, which allows homeowners to pay their taxes on a monthly basis.
The report also calls for more study and analysis of the challenges facing older homeowners.
"This is a thorough and compelling examination of the mounting financial pressures our elders faces as they struggle to maintain dignified, affordable housing. Thankfully, Central Ohio has the leadership, skill, and determination to answer this call to action. I am confident that we are up to this challenge,” said Carlie J. Boos, Executive Director of the Affordable Housing Alliance of Central Ohio
For more information and to view the report, visit the Auditor’s office website.
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